


Hidden Secrets

by Kayama



Category: Angel: the Series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-06-02
Updated: 2005-06-02
Packaged: 2018-05-31 10:30:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 18,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6466792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kayama/pseuds/Kayama
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wesley, Faith, 5 years later.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 1/7

_A big thanks to Lilacgirl, Snoopygirll and Zyre for the beta on this story_

**Hidden Secrets, Part 1**

It had been five years since they had vanished, left, run away. In those five years they had grown even closer than they had been before their last apocalypse. They were already close but no one had known.

No one knew that their bond went back before prison, before the torture, all the way back to Sunnydale. They had strong feelings for each other even then. They didn't like each other. Faith didn't like him for commanding her and B around. Wesley didn't like her for not listening to what he was saying.

Later in LA those feelings became stronger. They became hate. Faith hated everything he stood for. Rejection, failure. Wesley hated everything she represented. Failure, rejection. Then came the night of the torture, the night that changed everything. 

The way they saw each other, the way they felt about each other, their opinion of each other. Faith no longer saw the spineless coward she thought he was. Wesley no longer saw the rebellious, dangerous girl he thought she was. They recognized themselves in each other, even then. 

She turned herself in. Mostly for Angel, but also for Wesley. To show him that she could do the right thing. He fought with himself to overcome the fear he had, to be able to reach out to the girl. In the end he did.

No one knew about the weekly visits Wesley paid Faith. Not Angel, not Cordelia, not Giles, no-one. Faith didn't tell Angel when he came to visit her. Wesley didn't tell Cordelia when she asked where he had been. Frankly it was none of their business. 

Slowly they grew closer and loosened up. They saw the changes in each other. 

Faith told him about life in prison. She shared stories about the new guard, the latest gossips about who was doing whom, the fights she desperately wanted to stay out of, the effort to stay on the 'right path'. But mostly, what she missed about the outside world. She loved just talking with someone who understood her desperate need for acceptance.

Wesley did his best to bring as much news of the outside world to her as he could. He told her about what little news he had heard from Sunnydale, he brought her magazines and candy when it was allowed. He even encouraged her to read and get a hobby. He enjoyed talking to her. Faith understood the need to feel accepted.

During Angels 'beige' period Wesley even became Faith's only link to the outside world, her anchor.

When he didn't show up for his weekly visit, she began to worry. When he didn't show up the second week, she started to panic. The third week, Faith was ready to break out. That's when Wesley showed up. 

He was thinner and obviously in pain. She could see it as he carefully sat down in the chair. He told her everything about the zombie cop, being shot and Angel coming back to AI.

That was the first time Faith wanted to jump through the glass to be with Wes. 

But she stopped when he told her that he was the boss now. Wesley looked so proud that she felt the spark jumping over to her. Faith could see more and more of the clumsy, unconfident man disappearing each time he came to visit. She looked on, surprised as a new man emerged. A leader, a thinker, a true watcher, her watcher.

Wesley saw Faith becoming more at peace with herself and the world. She was more at ease, no longer ready to jump and attack at the first sign of trouble, but rather would stop and think first. He watched the rude, unconfident and vulnerable girl turn into the strong, capable woman he always knew was hidden underneath the mask.

Wesley did become Faith's only lifeline to the outside world. Angel never came to visit anymore. Sometimes the vampire wrote her letters, but those became less and less. She was sad and angry about that. Wesley did his best to assure her that Angel was alright and just needed time to get back on track again.

The second time Wesley didn't show up for weeks. Faith didn't worry any less. But she wasn't going to break out. She somehow knew that if anything bad had happened to Wes, she would know. Their bond was that strong now.

When he came to visit her again, he saw that she was visibly relieved. Wesley felt the same way too. Relieved to hear that Faith was doing so well, that she hadn't broken out of jail, kept up with her studies and training. He had thought about her in Pylea and worried.

Then he started telling her about Pylea, the war they had fought, the people he has sent to their deaths. Faith could read his body-language like an old, familiar book. He was having trouble coping with what he had done in Pylea, what he had become there. The lines in his face had become more pronounced, the frown on his forehead deeper. He somehow looked older, more experienced.

Then he told her the news they had received when they came back. About Buffy. 

Faith was shocked to hear about the other slayer. Wesley was there to comfort her, to make sure she didn't think any less of herself now that she was the only Slayer left, that she didn't loose it under the pressure she felt. 

Wesley could tell that the time he had been away had worried her. Her eyes were bleak when he had first come to visit her, after some time they were sparkling. Reading her body-language became second nature to him. He could see the changes. The bags under her eyes became less, her face looked more like that of a grown woman instead of the little frightened girl she once was. She spoke with a confidant, strong voice. Her entire posture showed how mature she had become.

They were both relieved, if not puzzled, when months later he told her about Buffy's miracle return.

Wes told her about Angel, Darla and Connor. How happy Angel was, but not perfectly happy, mind you. They laughed together at the stories he told her about Angel being 'Mr. Dad'. It was good to see the smiles on each other's face.

He also told her about Fred. Faith felt a pang of jealousy towards this girl she had never met, yet her watcher felt so strongly about. 

Faith was however, if anything, a realist. She would be in jail for a long time, she could not take away his chance of happiness because of feelings she had for him. Which may or may not be returned. So she encouraged him to make a move.

Then Wesley came to visit early one morning, still wearing his rumpled tuxedo. His eyes were red as if he had cried. So lost, alone, crushed. His hair was wild, he hadn't shaved, he was nothing like the Wesley she knew. 

He told Faith about the ballet, the count,...Fred and Gunn. The girl he loved and his best friend. He tried to be brave, told her he was happy for them. But she could see right through him. Wes was in pain, so much that it hurt Faith physically.

That was the second time Faith almost jumped through the glass to be with Wes.

After that visit Faith saw him sink into a depression further and further. Wes looked worse every time he came by. She worried and tried to get him to talk to her. He just told her he was fine, she shouldn't worry. But she could see it. The eyes became haunted, the bags under them more visible with every visit. Faith could see it, even through the glasses he wore were trying to hide it. The shoulders were slumped, his back tense. His voice was so soft and tired that she almost had to use her slayer hearing to hear him. Faith knew he was worried, hiding something. And that scared her.

Then the visits stopped.

Faith wanted to call Angel, Cordy, Giles, anyone. After a few weeks she couldn't take it anymore and she did call. She couldn't reach anyone. Not Angel, not Cordy and not Wesley. She was nearly frantic and getting into fights when he came back to her again.

She was shocked to see how much Wesley had changed in such a relatively short time. He looked colder, bitter, scarred inside...and outside. 

He was shocked to see what he saw in Faith's eyes. Anger, fear, desperation and love. For him.

Wesley told her the whole story, about the prophecy, Holtz, Connor, Justine. Faith had seen the scar on his throat the minute he walked in. His raspy voice made her wince and her heart bleed. He told her that Angel had tried to kill him. He left nothing out of the story, not even Lilah. 

She listened and did her best to assure him that he had tried to do the best he could, even if it was in his own dumbass way. She understood why he couldn't tell the others, why he kept it a secret, why he did it on his own. 

It was easy to understand if you were an outsider yourself.

Faith felt anger toward his so-called friends, his family when she heard that all of them had turned their backs on him. Even Cordelia. They never once asked his side of the story. 

Wes looked lost, lonely. Faith was all he had left. She became his anchor. 

He moved on. Started his own band of demon hunters. Faith encouraged him and made sure to get her point across about Lilah. He gave her a ghost of a smile and promised to kick the lawyer out next time.

She watched him grow stronger. Yet he turned bitter and often came to visit with a hangover. She could almost smell the alcohol through the glass. His features grew harder, his face closed off. The eyes that once told her everything, were now empty, bleak. Like they were no longer living, something had died. Faith worried and told him so. Wes promised to try and do better. 

Wesley told her about Justine in the closet, dragging Angel out of the ocean, Connor, Cordelia. Not wanting to go back to the people he had once called his family. 

Faith understood.

She watched the news in jail and saw the signs of an apocalypse even though no-one else could. When Wesley came to visit again she knew he needed her. She could read it in his blue eyes, the way he looked at her spoke volumes. He told her about the beast, the disappearance of the sun and the return of Angelus.

That was the third time Faith wanted to jump through the glass to be with Wes. 

This time she did. 

Not just because of Angelus, the beast or even the end of the world. But because he needed her.

They made a good team. They fought well together. Like they had done so for years. They knew each other's moves almost as though they could feel where the other was. They both had become warriors who were more confidant, at ease with themselves and each other. It was as if their bodies and minds were tuned in to each other.

The beast was defeated, with minimum losses on the side of good. With Willow's help they got Angel back. Everything seemed to return to what passed as normal in their world. With one difference: Faith was out of jail.

Faith didn't want to go back to jail even though she knew she should. Wesley didn't make her. He was glad to have her out, to have someone in his corner, to have her by his side. She could redeem herself outside of jail just as good, if not better, then inside.

When Willow told them about Sunnydale and The First Evil, Angel didn't hesitate to run to Sunnydale with Willow, to help out Buffy and the Scoobies. Cordelia and Connor went with him by default. The vampire asked Gunn, Fred and Lorne to come along too. They went without hesitation.

So did Faith and Wesley, but they went on their own. Even though no one had asked them, they still felt they might be needed there. It was after all, their fight too.

It was a vicious fight. In the end good side had won, but the price they had to pay had been high.They lost many, mostly potential slayers. But also Anya. Faith had seen her die. Anya had died a hero, saving someone else. It had left a deep impact on all of the warriors that had fought this war.

Wesley and Faith found each other after the fight. Both were wounded, he more then she. 'Slayer healing and all' She had told him. He could only agree and look at his not so fast healing wounds. She had done what she could to patch him up. They were lucky, both of them had survived. At least physically.

No one had come to look for them, no one had asked about their wounds, their well-being. They watched as the others had gathered around and looked each other over, comforted each other, mourned together, celebrated together. 

It was as if Faith and Wesley, the other slayer – watcher team, weren't even there. 

That's when Faith and Wesley made their decision, together. To leave, run away, vanish. They had very little left to pick up in LA . They left no note explaining where they went. They didn't want to be found, ever. They wanted a new life, a new beginning, a second chance or maybe even third for them.

That had been five years ago. 

At first they had traveled without a goal, they just wanted to get away as fast and as far as they could. Never staying in one place long, just moving, running, they had to get away. Then they had agreed to flee to the other side of the country, far away from everyone else and start a new life there. 

They kept fighting the good fight, at nights. But no longer were they afraid of being judged by their actions, of disappointing, of rejection, of failing. They got married within a year of their arrival, got themselves a house, jobs and a life they liked. 

Five years of being Mr. And Mrs. Pryce, five years of building themselves a new life, five years of loving each other, five years of fighting the good fight on their own, five years of something that resembled happiness. Five years.....and then it all went to hell.


	2. 1/7

_Beta read by Miniera_

**Hidden Secrets**

"Faith! Come on now, your going to be late," The English accented voice drifted up the stairs. Though usually patient it was now laced with irritation. Wesley sighed and walked back into the kitchen, setting his coffee cup on the kitchen counter. He looked outside watching the raindrops trickle slowly down the window.

Maybe he should just let her sleep and call her work to say she was going to take the day off, or that she wasn't feeling well. It had been a late night. They had once again found the laboratory that had been a thorn in their side for over six months now. The damn thing had found a new base once more and they had been busy all night getting out various 'good' demons and killing or staking the evil ones. Then they found a second building near by, they were going to observe that one tonight.

It looked as if Faith still wasn't going to come down anytime soon. Wesley wondered if she was up yet at all. He'd better go take a look. 

Faith had heard his voice the first time he yelled that she was going to be late. Yawning she had rolled to his side of the bed, taking in the scent that was all Wesley; tea, aftershave, soap, sex and old books. God, she really loved him. She heard him yell a third time and sighted. She really had to get up. "Coming," The tired voice of the dark slayer muttered from under the blankets.

Faith crawled back under the blankets enjoying the warmth. She could hear the rain ticking against the window. Another rainy day, oh happy oh joy. Faith thought for a moment that maybe she should have Wes call her work and tell them she was sick, the flu had been going around. Or maybe she could just take the day off, she still had a lot of those left. She really felt the need to cuddle up in those warm blankets and just relax for a day.

Last night's fight had been hard. That damn lab had opened up again in another abandoned building. Wesley had been wracking his brain ever since they first spotted it trying to figure out what they were doing with the various demons, vampires and other creatures that were being held captive there. He had found no clues, nor had he come any closer to finding out just who exactly was behind it all. 

Faith hated that as much as Wes did. Not just because of the mystery behind it, but also because it kept Wes away from her. Faith knew that once Wesley was engrossed in a mystery he couldn't figure out, he'd fret and search until he could figure it out, or at least found out _something._ She had to keep an eye on him when he was in those moods. Wesley usually forgot to eat; shower and well...take care of himself. It was her job now to make sure that he did and took time to relax. It was a hard job, but Faith somehow enjoyed every minute of it.

Faith stretched her muscles and could hear Wesley trotting up the stairs. From the sounds of his footsteps she could tell that he was also very tired. But unlike her, he worked at home, so he was able to schedule his own hours. 

The bedroom door opened and Wesley stepped in. Faith had decided to play 'sleeping person'. Wesley had to grin; he had seen this particular little act a hundred times before. He set down his coffee on the bedside table and waved the scent of caffeine from the other cup in her direction. "Come on love, time to wake up if you want to be anything like remotely on time for work," he spoke softly. He peered under the covers to see the brown, soft hair of his wife, the slayer. Wesley still felt butterflies in his stomach everytime he looked at her.

Faith stifled a yawn and sat up accepting the offered coffee cup. "Maybe I should call in sick or just take the day off, I really don't feel like dealing with work today," she glanced at him pleadingly. Usually the puppy dog look worked on everyone, but Wesley somehow seemed immune to it most of the time.

Wesley looked over at her in mock astonishment. "What ever happened to that tough slayer?" That earned him a soft poke in the shoulder. He quirked an eyebrow at her while rubbing said shoulder.

"Ha ha ha, very funny, it's not like I call in sick or skip work every day." Faith took another sip from her coffee and glared at him. Maybe that would work. She doubted it; Wesley somehow seemed immune to every look she threw at him. Except the 'special look' as Faith referred to it. But Faith only used those in special occasions off course.

Still rubbing his shoulder Wesley grinned at her, "Well, alright, I guess I could call and tell them you're not feeling well, you can relax for the day." He lay down next to her on the bed and closed his eyes. "Maybe I'll take the day off too and keep an eye on you." 

Faith poked him in the shoulder again. "Your very amusing today husband-o-mine," she sipped more coffee, "I'd like to see you keep an eye on me when they are closed."

"Will you stop doing that?" Wesley spoke with mock hurt, rubbing his shoulder some more. "Or we're going to have to set aside money so I can get a new shoulder every other year." He reached over her to pick up his coffee.

"Wuss," she muttered, but the smile she tossed him gave her away.

"Bitch," he growled back capturing her lips for a kiss.

"Hmmmm," Faith sighed, "I think you really should take the day off." She sat back against the pillows. "But I have this strange suspicion you're going to spend most of the day either on the internet, or on the phone to find out more about that lab we discovered again."

Wesley thoughtfully sipped his coffee. "We really have to find out what is going on there, who is behind it and most importantly how to stop this. No creature, alive, dead or undead should be treated like that." He looked over at her, "You've seen what they did to them."

Faith had indeed seen what they had done to those creatures. At first she had shrugged it off, figuring a demon was a demon and a dead demon was as good as any. But then Wesley had reminded her of the various demons they knew who had helped them. Clem, Lorne, Spike, Angel and even Cordelia were demons or half demons. That had got her thinking. Then they had seen what those humans had done to those poor creatures. Faith still had to shiver when she thought about that. 

The demons had been sliced open, most of them still alive, some had bled to death, and some had gone catatonic from the pain. The lab people had used no anesthesia or other painkillers. The demons were treated as objects, as guinea pigs. The smell that came from the cages was worth vomiting over. Inside the building it smelled like death, pain, torture. Both Wesley and Faith had been revolted to see all this and that was saying something, considering what they had both seen throughout their lives. After that encounter it became their goal to get in the way of whom ever owned the laboratory, and stop what they were doing. As well as flushing out any new labs, that seemed to appear in abandoned buildings.

Faith looked over at Wesley who was rubbing his eyes tiredly. He pushed his non-existent glasses back up. It was an old habit he never managed to get rid of. She had to giggle at the gesture; he was just so damn cute doing that. 

The scowl he threw her turned into a yawn, making her laugh even more. "Maybe we should get some shut eye first, since we'll be going out again tonight," Faith murmured thoughtfully as she slid her hand down Wesley's scruffy face. Faith liked it when Wes didn't shave. It made his face look older and his eyes more blue, not to mention that it accentuated those soft lips. 

Wesley yawned again and put his coffee cup on his side of the bed. "You're probably right love, we might discover something more tonight." He grabbed the phone on his side of the bed, "I'd better call your job and tell them you're taking the day off." Wes quickly finished the short phone-call. He settled on the bed again, pulled Faith close and nuzzled her neck while his eyes drifted close.

Faith let out a happy sigh when she felt his arms tighten around her. She somehow felt safe when she was in his arms. Even though she was the strong one physically, Wesley was her rock. Just as she was his.

The sound of the shower woke him a few hours later. He patted the bedside next to him only to find it empty. "Well that would explain the sounds coming from the shower," Wesley mumbled. He wondered if he should join her, it would after all save on the water. But then again he had showered this morning. Glancing at the clock he noticed that it was evening already. Of course the fact that it was dark outside and the lights were on in the bedroom might have given away that little fact too. A sigh escaped him, he was getting old.

"Evening sleepyhead." Faith walked in already dressed for patrol action, toweling her hair dry. "You ready to do some serious asskicking?" She smirked as she sat on the bed looking into his eyes.

"I will be once I wake up," Wesley tried to yawn but found his lips being captured by a pair of very strong but soft ones. They tasted of lavender, mint, strength and Faith, "Keep doing that and I don't want to wake up," Wes muttered when they broke apart.

"Well we can't have that Watcher-o-mine," Faith pulled him of the bed. "Time's a wasting, let's get going." She tossed him his patrol outfit to change into.

Damn, now he was 'the watcher' already, she certainly turned into slayer mode fast. Wesley quickly finished changing and walked down the stairs to find Faith waiting in the kitchen with freshly made coffee. He glanced outside. It was still raining. 

Faith pushed a cup of coffee in his hands. "Drink up, wake up," she smirked. She had already gotten both their leather coats. "Still raining outside, so I hope we're done soon. You know how I hate the rain."

"Yes dear, I know." He quickly gulped down the coffee. After all this time she still couldn't make anything resembling coffee. But he was not about to anger her, so he dutifully drowned it down quickly, trying not to grimace. He put down the cup and shrugged into the coat. "Well let's get a move on, the sooner we're done the sooner we can go home again."

They had no trouble getting close to the building that held the new impromptu laboratory. Although with Faith complaining loudly about getting wet, it was a surprise that no one had heard them. Wesley had to warn her several times to 'keep it down'. Faith's only response was to stick her tongue out at Wes. Wesley sighed at the sight of that. He was getting old. Which was the only thing stopping him from almost sticking out his tongue at her.

They quickly scanned the area. "Security is obviously not high on the list of whomever is behind this little what ever this is," Wesley noticed. 

"The fact that we hardly had any trouble with the other lab's, would give that away too Watcher," Faith said.

They had never encountered much trouble before when they had gone in to save or kill the creatures that were being held captive. That little fact made Faith careless and Wesley nervous.

Faith looked through the binoculars into the building. It looked like the normal bunch of captives; A few Vampires, a Nargul demon and a Guzla demon. She grinned. 

Seven years ago she wouldn't have know what kind of demons those were, nor would she have cared shit about that. Now, thanks to her watcher and husband she did. Faith had begun those studies in prison. Telling the guards the books were horror books. They were better off not knowing. Somehow knowing all this demon stuff made Faith proud; because she saw the smiling eyes of Wesley everytime she had pinpointed the right demon race.

Faith looked through the binoculars again and froze when she caught sight of a particular figure. She lowered the binoculars, glanced sideways at Wesley and then looked back through the binoculars into the building. "Shit," she muttered.

Wesley, who had been busy loading his gun, looked up alarmed. "Whats wrong?" He whispered. A coldness settled into his stomach when he saw the look Faith was giving the building. This did not bode well.

Faith bit her lip and turned at him. She handed him the binoculars. "Check out who's in the second cell on the left side of the building." The look she gave him was dark.

He frowned, took the binoculars and peered into the building. He was expecting to find a rare demon species or some kind of human that might throw some new light on this mystery. He was, however, not prepared for the sight that greeted him.

Faith kept chewing her lower lip and watched Wesley closely. She had no idea how he was going to react to this. They had left all that behind five years ago. Wesley more eager then Faith, but it seemed that the past always came back to bite you in the ass. Faith watched as Wes froze, lowered the binoculars, looked at her with open mouth, and then yanked his vision back toward the building again. "It's him isn't it?" Faith asked carefully.

"Damnit!" Wesley cursed. "How did he get here, he's supposed to be on the other side of the country?" Wesley almost threw the binoculars away, as if that would make the image he saw through them disappear also. He really didn't need this right now, or ever. They had tried so had to get away from their past, from their former friends. "Why does the past always come back to haunt you?" Wesley wondered out loud.

"I don't know Wes," Faith sighed, this was'n going very well. "What are we going to do now?" Although she already knew the answer she still had to ask the question out loud. 

Wesley rubbed his wet face and cursed some more under his breath. "We go in and get him out," he finished loading his gun, "what else can we do?"

Faith nodded. "Right, and the sooner the better." She peered into the backpack. "Maybe we should wear our ski-masks, he won't be able to recognize us?"

Wesley stopped her from getting the masks. "He would know it's us from a mile away, disguised or not."

"Damn," Faith tossed them back into the pack. "We'd better go and face the fucking music then." She pulled her wet hair into a ponytail so it wouldn't get in the way.

"Eloquent as always dear," Wesley was still looking at the building. He could only hope it was going to be as easy as it had been before. Not only their lives were at stake this time; but also the life of an old friend, or former friend. Wesley wasn't even sure what to think about that anymore.

"Lets rock and roll watcher-o-mine," Faith, totally in slayer mode began to sneak down toward the building as quietly as only a slayer could. 

Wesley narrowed his eyes at her sense of humor. He wasn't sure he was ready to face his past again. But as always TPTB had their own idea's. Curse them hundredfold! Getting to his feet he quickly followed his Slayer. "Here goes nothing." He almost had to laugh, wasn't that what the people from his past thought of him? A nothing? "How appropriate" Wesley muttered at the rain as he made his way down toward the building.


	3. Part  3

_Beta read by Miniera_

**Hidden Secrets**

"So far so good," Faith said to herself as she made her way over to the door on the left. She waited for Wesley to catch up.

"Faith, I know we've never had any trouble getting in and out before," Wesley started, jogging toward her, "but there's no need to be so reckless."

"Yeah, yeah," Faith rolled her eyes. He gave her the same lecture every time. She knew he was right, but still, she needed the thrill of danger. Faith approached the electric box and yanked the cover off, eying the exposed wires. "Same as always?"

Wesley peered over her shoulders. "Yes, the yellow ones," he said thoughtfully. "You'd think by now they would have learned from previous mistakes. Who ever this is, doesn't seem to care at all about anything."

"There's plenty of demons around to use," Faith replied ruefully. She cut the yellow wire and watched in satisfaction as the blinking red light on the camera faded away.

One small tug was enough for Wesley to open the electrically locked door. "Alright, we go in, get him and we leave. That's it, nothing else." He gave Faith a stern look. He knew how much she was itching to beat something or someone. "We can't risk it, it's not only our lives we're toying with now."

Faith nodded and pushed past him into the building. As usual there was no one to see. They'd figured out that the camera's that were all over the place must be watched at a different location. A location they hadn't been able to find yet.

Very quietly, because one never knew, Faith and Wesley made their way over to the room they had spotted their friend in. Faith pushed open the door and peeked inside. There was only one demon in the room, which was odd, but fortunate at the moment.

"I'll stay here and watch your back," Wesley said.

Faith nodded, she understood that he wasn't ready to go in yet and meet his old friend. She slipped through the door and sneaked toward the cell.

The demon inside was looking nothing like his exuberant, flamboyant self. Sure he was still wearing a dazzling suit, but his body language spoke differently. Shoulders hunched; head hung low; his suit rumpled; his hair a mess; the perfect picture of misery.

Quickly looking up when he heard sounds approaching his cell, the demon scooted back toward the wall. He didn't know what to expect here, it could be anything from his experience.

Faith winced as she noticed the bruises on his face. She motioned with her hands for him to stand back and then gave a swift kick against the locked door. Reaching out, Faith was relieved to find the door give way. "You wanna sit here or you wanna hit the road?" she asked.

The demon's mouth hung open. Only now did he recognize her. "Lead the way my little sex-kitten," he said, giving her a shaky smile.

Faith smiled back encouragingly and motioned for him to follow her. Hugging the shadows they made their way toward the door. Pushing the door open, Faith looked at Wesley, noticing how he wrung his hands nervously, but kept his eagle eyes open. 

Wesley nodded at Faith and she led her charge out the door. Wasting no time, Faith and Wesley made their way out of the building immediately.

"Crumpet?"

"Later Lorne," Wesley said, keeping a close watch on their surroundings, "we need to get out of here first."

Lorne had no other choice other than to follow his old friends out of the building. He happily left the horror building behind. The things he had seen there made his stomach turn, and the thought he could be next....he didn't even want to think about that.

Not noticing the rain, Lorne ran after the slayer and her watcher, running as if the devil was on his heels, not stopping until they reached the car. 

Wesley jumped behind the wheel, while Faith ushered Lorne in the car. Then she jumped in herself and they quickly made their way home. Making sure no one was following them.

~*~*~*~

Nobody spoke during the drive home. Once they were home, and inside the house, Wesley quickly made his way up to the bedroom.

Faith gave Lorne an apologetic smile and shrugged. "You wanna have a shower and some dry clothes? You can borrow some from Wes, even though it's not up to your usual standard," she said. Looking at his bright green, glittery suit she grinned. 

"Oh, a shower would be heaven. Are you sure Wes wouldn't mind if I borrowed his stuff?" Lorne wasn't sure what to think of his old friend. He couldn't read him, Wesley had closed himself off deliberately.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Faith said. She chewed her bottom lip. "He'll come around, he's a bit shocked you know?" She gestured for him to follow her.

"I'm sure he is," Lorne said, following her up the stairs. "So am I my firecracker. It's good to see you both, but woaza! Have I got a story to tell you."

Faith smiled at the nickname and led him into the guest-room. "I'm sure you do Kermit, but first things first. There's a shower over there, it's a private shower. I'll go get you some clothes and then we can all sit down and have a talk."

Lorne nodded at her thankfully. He turned and winced while he walked toward the bathroom.

"We'll take a look at those wounds later too," Faith said worriedly, "but I'll go have a talk with that husband of mine first."

"I'll take care of them in the shower, they're not so bad. But thanks," Lorne said over his shoulder. He watched her nod and walk out the room. Then he registered something she had said. "Husband?"

*~*~*~

Walking into the master bedroom quietly, Faith watched for a moment. Wesley sat on their bed, still in his wet clothes, looking down at his hands.

Faith pulled out an old pair of sweat pants and a large button down shirt for Lorne. She walked out of the bedroom and put the items in Lorne's room, together with a small first-aid kit. She had to smile when she heard the demon singing in the bathroom. Some things never change.

Wesley still sat in the same position as she left him, looking very much out of this world. Faith began to change into dry cloths herself and kept an eye on him, still not moving.

"You weren't very nice to him," she tried.

"I didn't know how to react," Wesley said very softly.

"It's not his fault, he doesn't look like he's here for fun," she answered. She pulled out some dry clothes for Wesley and laid them on the bed next to him. "Put on some dry clothes Wes, you'll catch a cold."

Now Wesley looked up and blinked at her. He looked at the clothes next to him puzzled, as if he was wondering where they had come from. He blinked again and slowly began to change into the dry outfit. "Right, mustn't catch a cold."

"Wes," Faith quietly spoke his name, "don't do this please."

Buttoning up his shirt Wesley looked at her. "Don't do what?"

"Don't close up on me, please Wes," she caught his eyes, her own eyes pleading at him and full of love.

Wesley sighed, wrapping his arms around her. He kissed her on the top of her head. "I'll try not to love." He smiled as he felt her arms wrap around him as well. "And I'll play nice with Lorne."

Grinning Faith whacked him on his arm. "Let's wait downstairs for him, I'll make some coffee."

"Uhm, I'd rather have some tea," Wesley said quickly, following her out of the room. 

"Why? Is there something wrong with my coffee?"

"Of course not, personally I think it makes excellent glue."

"You'll pay for that remark britboy."  
"Is that a promise?"

Through the crack of his door, Lorne listened to the banter, he smiled, they were perfect for each other. They seemed to have their lives on the rail here. And here he was, with a story that would turn their world upside down. He waited a few moments before following them down. There was no way he could postpone the inevitable any longer.

~*~*~*~

Lorne walked into the kitchen, seeing Wesley bustle around making a fresh pot of tea. The sight of the Englishman making his tea was so familiar, Lorne felt a pang of pain in his heart. He had no idea how much he had missed that. Of course, until a week ago, he'd no idea at all.

"Hey Lorne," Faith greeted him, "You want some coffee or tea?"

"Tea please." Lorne was certain about Wesley's tea making abilities, he wasn't so sure about Faith's coffee making.

Trying to catch Wesley's eye, Lorne looked at him. "How's it going muffin?"

Taking a deep breath, Wesley looked up and gave the demon a tiny smile. "Lorne..." He had to clear his throat before continuing. "Uhm, Lorne, I'd like to apologize for how I reacted. It was a bit of a shock seeing you."

"That's okay crumpet, I'm still a bit shocked myself."

Wesley's smile widened. He'd forgotten Lorne's obsession with pastry nicknames. It was something familiar and he was surprised that it warmed his heart. "Still, I apologize," he said putting down three mugs of tea on the table.

Everyone sat down at the table and there was a moment of silence. No one really sure where to begin.

"So, Lorne, how are things in LA?" Faith finally asked. She couldn't stand the silence, and she was dying of curiosity to hear about their friends in LA.

"Long story sweetie," Lorne sighed. "And a very strange one. Let me start at the beginning."

Wesley and Faith sat back in their chairs, hands wrapped around their mugs, expectantly waiting for Lorne to tell his tale.

~*~*~*~

"Promise me that you won't interrupt, before I finish okay?" Lorne asked.

Both Faith and Wesley looked puzzled. "Alright, go ahead," Wesley answered, while Faith nodded her agreement.

Sitting back Lorne sighed. "This is going to be very strange and probably shocking."

"Will you get on with it?" Faith was running out of patience.

"After the big fight, when you two completely vanished," he began, giving them both a pointed look, "we all returned to LA, only to find Lilah in the Hyperion waiting for us. You remember Lilah?"

Wesley quickly looked down at the table. How could he forget Lilah? His biggest mistake, even though it had only been once. He smiled at Faith when she held onto his hand. He turned his hand and laced his fingers through hers, enjoying the comfortable feeling, needing it.

Lorne looked at their interaction and had to smile. "Okay, so obviously you do. Anyway. She had an offer for us from the Senior Partners. They offered us the LA branch of Wolfram & Hart."

Both Wesley and Faith looked shocked and had to struggle to keep their promise not to interrupt.

Satisfied at not being interrupted, Lorne continued. "Strangely enough, none of us had to think long about it. We took the offer. Angel is the CEO, Fred is the head of the Physics department, Gunn is a top lawyer now, Cordelia is managing the firm as Angel's right hand and I'm the head of the entertainment department."

"What about Connor?" Wesley asked before he could stop himself.

"I'll get to that later," Lorne assured him. "Everything was going hunky dory, fighting evil from the inside. But the stress was getting too much. So, I had my sleep removed."

Lorne held up his hand to forestall any interruptions, he could read the hundreds of questions on their faces. "Of course this didn't end well. To make a long story short, Fred found a way to get my sleep back. Except that it wasn't the only thing she put back, but no one knew that. _I_ didn't even know that, until a few hours later."

Lorne took a deep breath, now he was coming to the hard part of the story. "I suddenly found myself bombarded with images," he continued, "as it turned out they were memories. My memories. Some one had taken them from me. Someone had erased any and all existence of Connor from my memory."

"What?!" Faith blurted out, "but why?"

Lorne continued his tale. "After the fight, Connor lost it. He want berserk, going on about how everything on this planet was evil. He ran off to the furies know where. Angel went after him and that's the last I remember hearing of Connor. I don't know what happened to him, only that his entire existence was wiped from my brain."

"How odd," Wesley looked thoughtfully, "Faith and I remember Connor very clearly." Rubbing the scar on this throat absentmindedly he continued, "this is very strange, why would anyone do such a thing? It has to be a Wolfram & Hart trick."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly," Lorne agreed. "Because the moment some hotshot from Wolfram & Hart found out that I knew, that I remembered, they jumped me and I woke up here."  
Wesley and Faith looked at each other shocked. This certainly wasn't the story they had expected to hear, not even close.

"That's not all, my sweeties," Lorne looked at them thoughtfully. 

"There's more?" Faith asked looking pale.

"Oh yes my little sex-kitten." Lorne took a deep breath, know that what he was about to tell them would shock them like nothing ever would, but he had to tell them. He was going to need their help if he wanted to help the others.

"Until a week ago? Before I got my memory back?" he began, looking at them to make sure he had their full attention.

Wesley and Faith nodded and gestured for him to get on with it.

"I had no idea the two of you existed."


	4. Part 4

_Beta read by Miniera_

**Hidden Secrets**

The only thing that could be heard for the next minute, was the rain against the window and Lorne's nervous breathing. He glanced from a frozen Wesley to Faith who had several emotions flicker over her face. The sound of Faith's cup breaking into tiny shards broke the eerie silence.

"Shit!" Scooting her chair backward, Faith quickly grabbed a dishrag and the trashcan, and started to wipe away the shards and the spilled tea with a shaky hand. "Dammit, that was my favorite cup, I'll have to run by that store and get me another one, I just hope....."

Wesley's hand closing over hers made Faith stop her nervous ramblings. She looked up into stormy blue eyes. She recoiled slightly from the anger and confusion she read in them. It exceeded her emotions by far. Clamping her mouth shut for the moment, she finished her cleaning.

"I know it's a lot to swallow cupcakes," Lorne said sadly. "But at least you didn't have to deal with getting your memory back all at once."

"We don't exist?" Faith asked softly. She sank back in her chair, shoulder slumped, her head in her hands. She looked back up at Lorne, "wiped out!?" she said louder.

"Right on the mark sex-kitten," Lorne said. His face was grim, "someone just wiped out the existence of three people just like that," he snipped his fingers. "And you know what's worse?"

"It gets worse?" Faith asked making a face. How could it be worse? Wasn't this bad enough?

"Oh yes," Lorne said, glancing over at Wesley worriedly. "Someone on the inside knows about this little gig."

Wesley's head shot up and his eyes pinned Lorne to his chair. "What makes you think that?" he asked, his voice far too calm.

Swallowing, Lorne glanced at Faith. He didn't like Wesley's calm, cool reaction to the news. 

Faith reached out and grabbed Wesley's hand. She could feel it shaking in hers. She laced her fingers through his and squeezed. She was relieved to feel Wesley squeeze back a little.

"Well," Lorne began, rubbing his forehead, "I asked all of them some questions. You know, Angel, Cordy, Gunn and Fred. If they knew Connor, or if either of your names rang any bells. They all denied know any of the names."

"What's that got to do with the 'someone from the inside was in it' theory," Faith interrupted.

"Because," Lorne continued, "They were the only ones I asked. A few hours later I woke up in the little lab of horrors."  
Pulling his hand away from Faith, Wesley rested his chin on them. "That would indicate that one of our...friends...knows about this mind rape."

Both Lorne and Faith flinched at Wesley's word choice, but they had to agree with him. What was done to Lorne, and who knew who else, was mind rape. Someone had taken away a part of who he was.

Wesley stood up and started to pace. "I can understand messing around with Connor's memory. I don't condone it, but I can understand," he started. "After all, what kind of life did the boy have? It's been messed up since he was a baby." He rubbed his scar, not unaware of the role he had played in that messed up life. The guilt still lay heavily on his shoulders, even after all these years.

"Yeah, okay," Lorne said, "I'm agreeing with you so far. Especially after seeing the kid go over the edge after the big fight."

Turning around Wesley looked at Lorne thoughtfully. "Yes," he said after a moment of silence. "But," he continued, "what I don't understand is wiping out of everyone else's memory. Why do such a thing? What would be the purpose?"

"Maybe he, she or they were afraid it would mess up Connor's new chance?" Faith shrugged. She followed Wesley's pacing with some worry. It was like watching a stick of dynamite, waiting for the fire to light the fuse.

"That doesn't give him the right, it wasn't his choice to make," Wesley said, his voice tight with held back emotions. "And what would be the....the....idea," he said, animating wildly with his hands, "to wipe away _our_ existence!"

"Wes, calm down," Faith said, her voice calm and soft, trying to sooth Wesley. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Lorne scoot away a bit. She wondered if Wes already knew who was behind this.

"He had _no_ right!" Wesley hissed, he grabbed his cup from the table and flung it against the wall. He wasn't surprised that the shattering of the porcelain did not make him feel better.

Faith watched Wesley trying to regain his control, clenching and un-clenching his fists, arms at his side, breathing heavily. Without a second's thought she stood, walked over to him and wrapped her arms around her husband. She felt his body tense even more for a few split seconds, before he relaxed into her embrace.

Breathing more easily now, Wesley wrapped his arms around Faith. Wanting to feel the connection, wanting to feel she was real. He thought the cliche about the floor being ripped from underneath you, was never more appropriate than at this moment.

"You think it's Angel who did this, don't you?" Faith asked softly.

"He's the only one with a reason Faith," Wesley said, "after all Connor was his son." He held tighter to her, struggling to keep his control.

Lorne watched the two together, feeling very much like an intruder. Their aura's blended in with each other, sparkling before his eyes as the slayer and the watcher comforted each other. He let them have the moment for a little while longer, before he asked the question he knew was on everyone mind.

"What are we going to do now?"

~*~*~*~

Faith laid her head on Wesley's shoulder, her hand rubbing up and down his naked chest. "You think we're doing the right thing?"

Wesley sighed, his hand stroking her hair. He took in her smell, a mix of sweetness and danger, his Faith. "Yes," he said thoughtfully, "what else can we do?"

"We could stay here and go on like we did. We were doing fine before Lorne showed up," she tried, though her tone wasn't convinced.

"It would be nagging at us for the rest of our lives, the could haves, should haves, might haves, and you know it, love." Wesley bend down and kissed the top of her head. "This is the only choice we have."

"Lorne's scared shitless," Faith said, toying with his chest-hair.

"Well he should be," Wesley answered, "if they find out his whereabouts, who knows what they'll do. And in Los Angeles, he's bound to be found sooner or later, being so close to the proverbial lions den."

"We should get him a baseball cap and some sunglasses," Faith giggled, picturing the green demon wearing them. "And then say he has a skin disease when someone asks."

"We'll get them tomorrow when we go out to buy the plane tickets to Los Angeles," Wesley said, smiling slightly. 

"We're really going back to LA aren't we?" Faith sighed. "This whole thing just fucking sucks."

"Yes, on both accounts," Wesley said. He pulled her up and kissed her, his hand snaking down her naked back. "How about you and I occupy our mind with something else?"

Faith smiled wickedly at him. She bend down her had and sucked on a nipple, enjoying the sound that action got out of Wesley. "What did you have in mind?"

In one swift move Wesley flipped them both over, so that he was now lying on top of her. "Let me show you what I have in mind," he said in a low voice, before his mouth was otherwise occupied, moving south over her body.

~*~*~*~

Sitting in the rental car, parked in a strategically hidden spot, Wesley sighed. The last week had reminded him, that the majority of detective work was flat out boring.

After their arrival in Los Angeles they had rented a small apartment, a car and made sure Lorne was securely protected. Then both he and Faith had spent the better part of that week observing the Wolfram and Hart building.

They had seen their old friends several times, they had watched the drones go in and out, all in all they had watched a normal firm. Nothing really exciting. It was getting them nowhere.

Asking around in the demon underworld, also got them nowhere. After the mind wipe, no one remembered them, so they couldn't use any of Wesley's old informants. They couldn't use the old 'beat them up and get answers' method Faith liked so much, because that would draw attention to them. And neither could they use any of Lorne's informants, afraid that doing so, would lead to Lorne.

"This is getting us goddamn nowhere," Faith grumbled from the passenger seat.

"Agreed," Wesley nodded. He stared through his binoculars. Still nothing important to see. He had been having mixed emotions, seeing his old friends, his old _family_ again. On the one side he was happy to see them again, but shocked when he saw the change in them. They had all grown harder, colder, almost unrecognizable. On the other hand there was anger in Wesley, when he thought about that fact that at least one of them had a hand in this little game.

"We need to get inside," Faith said, chewing her bottom lip. She glanced passed Wesley toward the building. "To that room Lorne mentioned, where they store the memories." She made a face, she still thought it was pretty wild, that there was a room that stored stuff like memories, emotions, sleep, and god only knew what else.

"There's always someone working in there," Wesley said thoughtfully, "if we were disguised as employees, it might be easier to get inside and look for that room." 

"Let's beat it then and get some stuff for the undercover job," Faith grinned. She was looking forward to some action, getting the adrenaline pumping, because sitting in a car, even with Wes, was getting on her nerves fast. "We'll just have to make sure not to run into any of the old gang, since one or more of them are in on this." She paused for a moment. "I can't believe either one of them would do such a thing."

"Neither can I, Faith," Wesley said, "but you don't know how much they might have changed." He started the ignition and drove away from the curb, his mind on his old friends and on how much they actually might have changed.

~*~*~*~

Getting into the building, had turned out to be ridiculously easy. Both Wesley and Faith had raised an eyebrow at how easy it was. Security was either a joke, or the firm was very confidant that any intruders weren't capable of doing any actual harm.

Though getting into the building had been easy, finding the infamous room was not. Lorne had drawn them a map, so they would know where to look, for some reason the room was no longer at the described location. Until Wesley figured out that the current layout was a mirror-image of the layout on the map.

So now they were casually walking to the other side of the building. Or trying to be casual. Faith glanced over at Wesley. Clean-shaven, nice suit and glasses back on his nose, he looked very much in character. Would you have asked her seven years ago, Faith would have called him a nerd, or something similar. Now? She had to stop herself from throwing him up against a wall and have her way with him. The fact that she knew he was hiding two guns under his jacket, and knew how to use them, turned her on even more.

Wesley grinned when he saw Faith pulling her skirt down once again. "Have I told you how smashing you look in that outfit dear?" He smiled innocently at the glare she threw him. 

Wriggling her shoulders, Faith growled. The blazer and the skirt were too fancy for her liking, the skirt kept riding up to her great annoyance. And the tights, she wasn't even going to begin about those. But she had to admit, the outfit did make her look lawyer-y, or at least like someone who worked in a prestigious office.

"The room should be right around the corner," Wesley warned. Both he and Faith looked around, but no one appeared to notice them. The small crowd of people that worked in the evenings all minded their own business.

When they reached the dreaded room, they both stared at the door for a while. "Here goes nothing," Wesley said after a moment. He punched in the code Lorne had given him, sending a small prayer up to whomever might be listening that it would work.

For a few agonizing seconds nothing happened. Faith and Wesley held their breaths, while their eyes were locked on the door. Then, with a small click, the door opened and no alarms began to blare, signaling their intrusion. They both breathed out relieved.

Wesley carefully opened the door and peeked inside, expecting to find an army ready to jump at them. The room was empty, except for the rows and rows of shelves against the walls, on which were various containers.

"Look at all these," Faith said in awe after they closed the door behind them. "There's hundreds!"

"Bugger all," Wesley muttered, this was going to take more time then he thought. "You start over here, I'll start on the other side."

Faith nodded and began looking over the containers, quickly scanning over the names she didn't recognize.

An hour later they still hadn't found what they were looking for. Faith was slowly beginning to get annoyed when she spotted a familiar name. "Rupert Giles," she whispered. "Wes, I think I found it," She hissed.

Wesley quickly came over and looked at the containers. "Alexander Harris, Winifred Burkle, Buffy Anne Summers," he read out loud. He noticed several other containers with names he recognized right away and others that sounded vaguely familiar. "Dear lord, the magnitude of this is far bigger then I anticipated," he whispered.

"Fuck, Wes, look at all these names," Faith said stunned, "They totally wiped out our and Connor's existence alright."

They froze when they heard the door open and close again, followed by the soft sound of someone locking the door. 

"I thought I'd find you two here," a voice said. A voice that sounded frighteningly familiar to Wesley.

Both he and Faith whirled around and stared at the person who was now standing in front of them. 

"Hello Wesley, Faith, I think we need to have a talk."


	5. Part 5

_Beta read by Minier and Lilacgirl_

**Hidden Secrets**

"Cordelia?" Wesley whispered stunned.

She still looked the same as Wesley remembered her. Hair slightly longer and curlier, but dressed to the nines. Her hands were folded in front of her, in an effort not to wring them nervously. 

"Hi, Wes," Cordelia smiled nervously. "How's it going? I heard you got married. I saw the pictures and boy! That was a crappy wedding. If I'd been there, it would've been much better, with proper food and..." her voice trailed off when she saw the cold way Faith and Wesley looked at her.

"And I guess that's not the point right now," Cordelia said meekly.

" _You_ were behind all this?" Faith asked, not really believing it. "Queen C? Miss do the right thing? Did your demon take over?"

"As if you're fully human." Cordelia spat back.

Wesley's fist slamming against one of the metal cabinets, made both woman jump. Sighing, Wesley took the glasses of his nose and rubbed his eyes. "Ladies, could we focus on the matter at hand please?"

Faith mumbled something; while Cordelia said nothing, she wasn't able to keep her hands from wringing nervously though.

Wesley stared at Cordelia for a long time. She wished he would put his glasses back on, at least they would hide the cold and hurt look he was giving her. A look she had hoped never to see.

"Why?" Wesley finally asked, he was unable to keep the hurt out of his voice, even though he was doing a good job of suppressing the anger he felt.

"I thought I was doing the right thing," Cordelia answered softly.

"How? How can you think wiping out our existence is the right thing?" Wesley wanted to know.

"I...I don't think this is the right place to talk about this," Cordelia said.

"What's the matter C? Don't you trust the place you work for?" Faith sarcastically asked.

"She's right Faith," Wesley said, "this isn't the right place to talk." He looked at Cordelia again. "How did you know we were here in the first place?"

"Lucky guess," Cordelia shrugged. "I saw you and Faith on one of the security cameras. No one else noticed anything of course, but I did. So I figured there would be only one place where I'd find you two."

"You're the only one who remembers us?" Wesley asked.

"No," Cordelia said, "Eve does too, she's the liaison to the senior partners. I don't trust her one bit. And Lorne knows too." She looked sadly at them. "But he disappeared, he only found out a week ago by accident, and then vanished into thin air. I'm so worried, Eve won't tell me anything and I haven't been able to find out anything by myself."

Either Cordelia's acting had gotten decidingly better over the years, or she really was worried. Wesley couldn't tell, and he thought it better, not to mention Lorne's where abouts for now.

"We'll move this conversation to our temporary apartment," Wesley decided.

"What?!" Faith hissed, "Are you crazy?"

"Excuse us for a moment," Wesley said, while he grabbed Faith's arm and pulled her away a bit.

"Are you crazy?" Faith asked again in a low voice.

"Faith, love, calm down," Wesley said, his voice equally low. "We've the place warded by myself and Lorne, there is no way they could find us there. It's the safest place I can think of."

"I don't trust her, what if she's wired or something," Faith wanted to know.

"Then those wards will catch that too. Look, I don't trust her either, but if we want to hear her story this is the only chance we'll have."

Sighing Faith nodded. "Okay, but if this comes back to bite us in the ass, I have the right to say 'I told you so'."

Smiling Wesley kissed her softly on the lips. "If that happens, you may say I told you so."

Turning around, they noticed Cordelia stuffing something in a bag.

"What are you doing?" Wesley wanted to know.

Zipping up the bag, Cordelia looked at them steadily. "This isn't going to be a secret much longer," she began, "and I don't trust those Senior Partners." She pointed at the shelves that held the containers with memories. "I took the memories out and put them in the bag, I want them with us, so the Senior Partners can't use those against us."

Faith reached out to take the bag from her. "I'll take that, we don't trust you."

Cordelia sighed and let Faith have the bag. She was a hurt by the lack of trust, but she understood. After all, they had every reason not to trust her, after what she had done.

"Let's split then," Faith said, joining Wesley who was peeking out the door.

"Alright, the coast is clear," he told the two women.

Together the walked casually out of the building, sighing in relief as the doors closed behind them.

"Our car is that way," Wesley said, pointing toward the car. "The apartment not far from here."

They were almost at the car, when a voice from behind them interrupted. 

"Working late Princess?"

Cordelia groaned and looked over her shoulder. "Go away Spike," was all she said.

Faith and Wesley blinked at each other. Spike was the last person they'd expected to see here in Los Angeles. "What's he doing here?" Faith wanted to know.

"Who're you two?" Spike asked. He narrowed his eyes at Faith. "Slayer," he hissed, "How can you be a Slayer? There's only one Chosen One."

"He works with Angel occasionally," Cordelia quickly explained to Wesley and Faith. She turned to Spike. "They're old friends of mine, yes Faith's a Slayer, Wes is her Watcher. We are on our way to have an important meeting away from here," she told the vampire, emphasizing the words _away from here._

"Oh, you're finally going to do something about this still evil law firm," Spike smirked.

"Spike doesn't trust Wolfram & Hart," Cordelia explained.

"Spike is a very wise man," Wesley said dryly.

"I like him," Spike grinned, pointing at Wesley. "If you don't want Evil Inc. To know about this meeting, I'd make sure to shake off your stalkers, or did you forget about them?" 

"Dammit!" Cordelia hissed. In all this commotion, she had indeed forgotten about the ever present stalkers. The little Wolfram & Hart shadows all the department heads had. Obviously the Senior Partners trusted them as much as they trusted the Senior Partners.

"Where are they?" Wesley wanted to know. He followed Spike's nods and noticed four men standing spread around them. They were hidden very well, he hadn't even noticed them.

"Alright, here's what we do." Wesley continued. "Faith, you take Cordelia to our place, in the meantime I'll serve as a distraction to these stalkers."

"I don't think so," Faith interjected. "I'm the Slayer here..."

"Faith," Wesley interrupted her, "I know you're the Slayer, but I want someone with Cordelia I can trust, and who can protect her if necessary." He noticed Cordelia flinching slightly at those words.

Faith was about to protest again when Spike spoke up. "I can help out with the diversion, if I get to be in on the meeting. I want to know what the deal is with the Slayer."

"I don't know..." Cordelia began.

"He's gonna find out sooner or later C," Faith said and started to pull Cordelia to the car. "Be careful," she told Wesley.

~*~*~*~

A knock on the door broke the tense silence that was hanging in the apartment, from the moment Cordelia and Faith had arrived. Faith jumped up and looked through the spy hole in the door. Sighing in relief, she opened the door.

"What took you so long?" She wanted to know as Spike and Wesley walked into the apartment. Taking a closer look at them, Faith noticed Wesley's eye was bruised, that would turn into a beautiful shiner come morning. "What happened?" she demanded, while she carefully brushed her hand over Wesley's face.

Cordelia walked over and glanced at the hand Wesley was cradling to his chest. She noticed Spike didn't seem to sport any evidence of a fight. "What happened?" she echoed Faith's question.

"Funny story that," Spike grinned. He pulled out a cigarette and sat down on the arm of the sofa. "You two bints drove off and those four guys jumped into their truck. All vampires by the way," Spike began gleefully.

Wesley pulled a face and walked to the kitchen. "I'll get some ice while you mock me," he muttered.

"So Watcher guy here, jumps toward their truck, yanks open the door and pulls out the first vamp he can get his greedy little hands on. Easy dust," Spike continued as if he wasn't interrupted. "Then off course the others came out and attacked him from both sides, one of them clogs him on the eye," Spike made a gesture with his hands, indicating just how Wesley got hit. "So Captain Britain here, whirls around and wants to hit the Vamp, only vampy had opened a door to protect himself, so Watcher guy's hand smashed against the door. Must have hurt." 

Walking into the room, holding an icepack against his eye, Wesley made a face at Spike. "As if you were doing anything useful."

"I'm getting to that mate," Spike grinned. He was standing up now, gesturing wildly with his arms while telling the story. "Then he gets mad, this stake appears on his wrist out of _nowhere_ , and he dusts those two vamps like that," Spike finished, snapping his fingers. 

"Yes, and I would have been lost if you hadn't dusted the vampire that was on the other side of the truck, cowering and doing absolutely nothing." Wesley added dryly.

"He could have jumped you," Spike said mock seriously. He clapped Wesley on the shoulder. "That was a good fight. You're alright mate."

Faith sighed and grasped Wesley's wounded hand, to take a good look at it. She pulled a finger, pressed on some spots and looked closely at Wesley's reactions. "That's gonna be sore for a while, nothing seems to be broken," she scolded.

Smiling apolitically at her, Wesley wrapped one arm around her. "Where is..." he started to ask.

The door to the guest room opened and Lorne strode out, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Cordelia? Spike? I thought I heard familiar voices."

"Lorne?!" Cordelia all but squealed. She ran over to the green demon and hugged him close. "Oh, I was so worried about you when you disappeared, after you got your memories back," she rambled. She stopped when she felt the demon tense in her embrace. Mentally kicking herself she pulled back.

"You knew?" Lorne asked softly. "You knew about the missing memories?" his voice was laced with hurt and disbelief.

Cordelia hugged herself and looked down at her shoes. "Yes," she whispered.

Pulling out a chair and straddling it, Faith sat down. "This would be your cue to spill the beans," she said.

Looking up Cordelia took in the room's occupants. Faith on the chair, looking at her angrily. Spike on the arm of the sofa, looking at her expectantly. Lorne on the sofa, looking at her hurt. Wesley was still standing, his face showing no emotions what so ever. That scared her the most.

"I thought I was doing the right thing," Cordelia said softly.

"We all do, don't we?" Wesley said calmly.

"I thought you of all people would understand," Cordelia said, giving him a piercing look.

Wesley flinched and a quick flash of pain went over his face. "Maybe, but unlike myself, you're given the opportunity to tell your side of the story."

This time Cordelia flinched. "Right," she whispered.

"I wanna know how much memory was taken," Faith said.

Taking a deep breath Cordelia began. "Connor's existence was completely wiped out and rewritten. Connor himself was included in the wipe out. He doesn't remember who he was, he doesn't remember he's Angel and Darla's son, he only knows who he is now."

"And who is he now?" Lorne asked, his voice uncharacteristically hard.

Cordelia swallowed. "He's a happy boy now, who goes to college and has a normal family life. No growing up in hell dimensions, no having to deal with supernatural shit, no going berserk and trying to kill innocent people," Cordelia explained. She was still sure, that she had done the right thing by wiping out Connor's memory and giving him a new chance.

"Killing innocents?" Wesley asked, frowning at her.

"Yeah, after the fight he ran off. Angel tried to catch up with him, but couldn't find him. When we got back to L.A., Connor was already here; I found this out through Eve. He had kidnapped a store full of people and was about to blow them up. That's when I struck the deal with Wolfram & Hart." Cordelia explained.

The room was silent for a moment, everyone lost in their own thoughts.

"I wanted...to give him a chance," Cordelia's soft voice broke the silence. "I wanted him to have a live without pain, fear and this anger he carried inside himself."

Lorne's face softened a bit. He remembered Connor all too well now, the boy had been very messed up. He recognized that Cordelia may have done the right thing, by wiping out Connor's memory.

"Alright," Wesley said, "But what about us? Why did you get rid of Faith and myself?"

Cordelia's head jerked up. "I didn't get rid of you," she said, eye's blazing fire. 

"You wiped out our existence Cordelia," Wesley hissed, "What would you call it?"

Cordelia took a deep breath to control her emotions before she spoke again. "I wanted to give you a second chance as well. The wipe out of your existence, didn't happen, until a year after Connor's."

"What gave you the right to do that Cordelia," Wesley demanded to know, his voice so laced with suppressed anger, that the others looked at him worried.

Sighing Cordelia sat down. "Wolfram & Hart always knew where you two were. They didn't tell Angel, but I found out by accident that they were keeping track of you two, which they still do FYI. I saw the movies, and the pictures, the reports. I struck another deal with the law firm. They wiped out your and Faith's existence from the moment you two came to Sunnydale. Anything before that was rewritten, which was fairly easy in Faith's case. It turned out to be easy in your case as well because..." her voice trailed off. She gave Wesley an apologetic look.

"Because why?" Spike asked, speaking for the first time since Cordelia began her story. So far he had been too stunned to speak.

"Because anyone important who knew me, died in the explosion that took out the council," Wesley said, his eyes never leaving Cordelia's face. "Including my parents."

Faith reached out to grab hold of Wesley's good hand. Sensing the inner turmoil he was going through. She felt him squeeze her hand, but he didn't turn to look at her.

His eyes still locked on Cordelia's, Wesley stood up and strode over to her. "Why?" he asked, his voice hard. "Why did you do it Cordelia? I think we have a right to know."

She looked up at Wesley, tears rolling down her face. "You both were so happy, don't you understand!" she cried. "Angel and Fred wanted to go look for you. They would have ruined the happiness you two shared!" she looked at them, tears freely flowing down her face now. I wanted so much for at least one of us to be happy," she whispered. 

"But why didn't you tamper with our memories then?" Faith wanted to know.

"I couldn't wipe out your memories of each other for obvious reasons," Cordelia said.

"I understand that, but why let us remember Connor?" Wesley asked.

Cordelia fell silent and looked at the floor. "Because," she said quietly, "because I didn't feel so alone knowing that someone else remembered."

Wesley and Faith looked stunned at each other. Neither of them knew what to do. They understood Cordelia did what she had done, because she wanted them and Connor to have a second chance, a chance to be happy, a chance for a new life. 

"I understand why you did this Cordelia," Wesley said, "but it will take some time for me, and I think I speak for Faith as well, to deal with this situation."

Cordelia nodded, giving him a shaky smile through her tears. 

"Hang on, hang on," Spike stood up, "You're telling me, that Angel has a son? And I should know these two? I want to know what in the bloody hell is going on!"

"You will," Cordelia said calmly. Before anyone could react, she pulled out a gun, aimed it at Spike and pulled the trigger. The vampire fell to the floor with a loud thud.

Faith jumped up and grabbed the gun away from Cordelia. "What the hell did you do?"

"It's alright cupcake," Lorne quickly came between the two women, "she just shot his memories back into him. He'll come around soon."

Wesley took the gun from Faith and looked it over. "You could have warned us," he muttered.

"What? And spoil the element of surprise?" Cordelia quipped, a bit of the old Cordy shining through.

Looking at her, Wesley's eyes held a sparkle of amusement before they grew serious again. "Angel doesn't know," he said.

Cordelia's smile froze on her face and she looked down again. "No," she said quickly.

"You're going to have to tell him," Wesley said.

"I know," she answered, her voice filled with fear, she quickly turned around and ran out onto the balcony.

A few minutes later Wesley joined her. For a moment they were both silent, looking out over the city, without actually looking.

"I'm sorry," Cordelia whispered.

"What exactly are you sorry for?" Wesley asked.

"For not being there for you after the Connor kidnapping thing," she said, turning around to face him. "I understand now how difficult it must have been for you to make that decision on your own."

"Ah," Wesley smiled ruefully, "better late then never I guess." He looked up confused when he heard a sob.

Cordelia angrily wiped away some tears and pressed her hand against her mouth. "Oh Wes, I'm so scared, what am I going to do?"

Without thinking, Wesley pulled her in his arms. "You do what you have to do Cordy," he told her in his calm voice. "You'll have to tell Angel and the others. They'll be angry with you, no doubt, but if they are anything like I remember them, they'll understand eventually."

"Even Angel?" Cordelia asked softly.

Wesley was silent for a moment. He wasn't sure about Angel. He would never have thought that his old friend would want to kill him after the Connor kidnapping either. What would he do to Cordelia?

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," he told her, avoiding the question.

Cordelia lifted her head from his shoulder and looked into his eyes, "We?"

"Faith and I are in agreement, we're going with you when you tell them," Wesley said. "Cordy, we may not agree on how you handled this, but we do understand. And in a strange way, both Faith and I feel grateful that you did this, because you wanted us to be happy." 

Cordelia gave him a grateful smile. "You and Faith certainly seem very happy with each other."

"We are," Wesley grinned. His eyes shining with love when he thought about his wife, his Slayer, his girl, _his_ Faith. "Let's get back inside and try to get some sleep. We have a difficult day tomorrow."

Cordelia nodded and made her way back inside, her face still stained with tears. She didn't try to hide them.

After a moment Wesley followed her. He had an uneasy feeling about tomorrow; it was as if a stone had dropped inside his stomach. And he learned early on, never to ignore this feeling. They were going to have to be prepared for every possibility when they were going to face Angel tomorrow.


	6. Part 6

_Beta read by Minier and Lilacgirl_

**Hidden Secrets**

"Do you think this plan will work?" Faith asked. She slid under the covers and snuggled up to Wesley.

"It's the best plan we've come up with," he sighed. He had his hands folded behind his head, and was staring up at the ceiling.

"Lorne's pretty pissed," Faith muttered, "and Spike too."

"Well, Cordy is sleeping on the sofa, instead of the guest-room. That's not usually Lorne's chivalrous way. So I'd say he's pretty pissed." Wesley had to smile at the subtle hints of anger the demon was sending. "He'll get over it, he does understand."

"What about Spike?" Faith wanted to know.

"I think he was more upset by getting shot with the memory gun, then with the actual return of the memories," Wesley said thoughtfully. "Of course neither Connor, nor we, really had much influence on his life."

"You're worried," Faith said softly, kissing his shoulder gently.

"Spike will be fine, he's out looking for a fight and he'll be fine when he gets back."

"I wasn't talking about Spike," Faith said annoyed. She smacked him lightly, "you know I wasn't."

"Tomorrow, we're going to the old Hyperion, and have a secret meeting with our former friends to give them back their memory. We've no idea how they will react and each of them work with the Evil Lawfirm," Wesley sighed, "So yes, I'd say we've reason to be worried."

"At least Lorne will go over there before the meeting to ward the place against any interruptions from Evil Inc." Faith said.

"Yes," Wesley agreed, "I've given him some of the spells for the wards I used here. We should be safe from them." He sighed again. "I do wish he wouldn't go alone, but he wanted to feel more useful."

"He'll be fine," Faith said.

They were silent for a moment. Wesley staring up at the ceiling, deep in thoughts, Faith snuggling closer to him.

"Wes?"

"Yes?"

"You're thinking again, and when you're thinking too much, you worry too much." Faith murmured in his ear.

"I'm sorry, I can't seem to help myself." Wesley apologized.

Faith rolled over and pounced on Wesley, gripping his wrists and pinning them above his head. "I have ways to distract you," she said, tossing him a wicked grin.

"Is that a threat?" Wesley grinned, wriggling slightly.

"Damn straight," Faith said, she swooped down and bit softly in one of Wesley's nipples. She then turned her head and gave the other nipple the same treatment.

Wesley gasped and then moaned. "Faith," he panted, "We're suppose to be resting, we have a lot of work tomorrow," he managed to say.

Kissing her way down his body and getting rid of Wesley's pyjama pants and boxer in one swift move, Faith looked up. "You complaining?" she smirked, before bending her head and licking Wesley's erect cock.

Wesley arched up his back and groaned louder. "N- no?" he tried.

Faith's face appeared in front of him. She used her Slayer strength to pin him down on the bed, again holding his wrists trapped above his head. She hissed as she impaled herself on his cock. "Then shut up," she growled in his hear.

Smirking up at her, Wesley shut his mouth audibly.

Raising herself, Faith captured his lips for a hard kiss. "I like riding my stud hard," She growled in his ear and started moving up and down fast. _God,_ Faith thought, _that sounded corny, but what the hell._

Wesley found it was impossible to shut up, completely, and he didn't really care.

~*~*~*~

Cordelia woke up to the smell off eggs and bacon. She moved from the sofa, groaning as the kinks in her body made themselves known. Damn, Lorne had been angry. But he had come out later that night, and they'd had a good talk. He was still angry, but he understood, said he didn't want to loose her as a good friend. Cordelia was sure they would be okay again after some time.

Yawning, she padded toward the kitchen, following the smell. Where she found...Faith?...preparing breakfast?

Blinking a few times at the sight, Cordelia sniffed in the smell of the bacon and eggs. It smelled good. "You can cook?" she asked Faith surprised.

"Good morning to you too," Faith said, ignoring the question.

"Morning," Cordelia muttered. "I'd have thought it would be Wesley who'd do the cooking?" she tried again.

This time Faith turned around and smirked at her. "Are you kidding? He's capable of burning water in the microwave."

"Make one little mistake, and they hold it against you for years," Wesley's sleep voice came from the doorway. He rubbed his eyes and stared at both women. "Morning," he said.

Faith and Cordelia looked at him and then at each other. They couldn't help but giggle. Cordelia felt a shimmer of hope surge though her. She had missed teasing Wesley. And maybe, just maybe, she could become friends with Faith.

Sighing, Wesley walked over to the kitchen counter and started to make coffee. "At least I can make drinkable coffee," he muttered.

Taking a closer look at her old friends, Cordelia had to laugh again. "Oh my god, you two are like so...couple-y," She grinned. "Or you can't afford to buy more then one pair of pyjamas?" She giggled.

Faith and Wesley grinned at each other. She was wearing the top of the pyjama, he the pants. They liked it that way. "It saves on the money," Wesley deadpanned. He took a few plates and handed them over to Faith.

"Lorne already went over to the Hyperion, to set up the wards and stuff," Cordelia said. She nodded her thanks at Faith when the Slayer handed over a full plate.

Wesley looked over at Cordelia worriedly. "Did you two have a talk?" he asked, trying to sound casual. He sat down at the table with his own plate.

"Hmmm, this is actually good Faith," Cordelia said surprised. She swallowed and glanced at Wesley. "Yes Wes, Lorne and I had talk. We'll be alright," she smiled.

"Good," Wesley said, pulling a hand through his hair. "That's good to hear."

"You're damn lucky to have such good friends Cor," Faith mumbled through her mouthful of food.

"That remains to be seen," Cordelia sighed. She pushed here plate away, suddenly not feeling hungry anymore.

Reaching over, Wesley patted her hand. "It'll be alright," he said softly.

Looking up, Cordelia gave him a shaky smile. "God Wes, I hope so."

They all went silent, eating their breakfast. No one really sure what to say. They were all thinking about what they were about to do later that today. Then they heard the door open and shut.

"You lot got any Wetabix or something?" Spike asked, striding into the kitchen as if he owned the place.

He was met with three blank stares. "Pardon?" Wesley asked after a moment of silence.

"We-ta-bix," Spike said slowly, as if he was talking to a five year old. "Tastes great with the blood," he said, holding up a packet. "Didn't have time to get some meself."

"Ewww!" Both Cordelia and Faith made a face. They were glad they had already finished their breakfast. "Spike, that's just gross!" Cordy blurted out.

Neither of them were skittish of blood, or slime or anything like that. Not after all they'd seen. Slime demons; nasty wounds, living with vampires. But food, was another thing all together. One didn't mess around with food.

Wesley grinned and walked over to the cabinet. "I believe we may have some," he said, rummaging through the cabinets. After a moment he found what he was looking for. "Ah," he said, pulling out the box and handing it over to Spike. 

"Ta mate," Spike grinned, pulling the bowl of blood out of the microwave. He opened the box and started putting the contents into the blood.

"I'm gonna get dressed," Faith jumped from her chair and walked to the bedroom. 

"Yes, me as well," Wesley padded after her toward the bedroom.

"Don't be as loud as last night!" Cordelia yelled after them.

"Shut up Cor!" Faith yelled back, her voice held a hint of amusement though. 

Grinning, Cordelia made her way over to the bathroom, getting ready herself.

*~*~*~

The old Hyperion held a lot of memories. Good and bad. They slammed into Cordelia and Wesley as they entered the hotel late in the afternoon. Lorne was already waiting for them.

"All set then?" Spike asked, striding around the building curious. So this was where the big fall out had happened. Among other things.

"Yep," Lorne sat down on one of the sofa. "All the wards are in place, I even did a little cleaning up. Helped get me through the day," he shrugged.

Wesley suppressed a smile, when he thought about the many cleaning frenzies Cordelia had gone through. After a vision, or when she had been worried.

"Fuck, this place is huge!" Faith exclaimed. "I totally forgot how big this place was." She walked around the lobby, picking up things here and there.

"So, now we wait?" Spike asked, lounging on one of the sofa's.

"We wait," Cordelia said. Sighing she sat down next to Lorne, giving him a tiny smile as he patted her knee.

"It'll be alright sweetie," Lorne said. He didn't think he sounded very convincing. "I left them the message to meet us here and used our secret emergency code." He wrapped his arm around Cordy and gave her a quick hug. "It'll be fine," he said. He didn't think it sounded anymore convincing then the fist time he'd said it.

Looking around, Faith noticed that Wesley had wandered off into the office. Moving silently, she joined him. She circled her arms around his waist from behind, giving him a comforting hug.

Wesley put his hands over hers and kept looking around. There we still some old books scattered around here and there; some stray papers, and a lot of dust. "This used to be my office," he said softly.

"I know," Faith answered. She let go off Wesley and picked up one of the old books. "One of yours?"

Wesley took the book, and looked at it. "I think so," he said, caressing the worn leather bound gently. He leaned back against the desk and thought about the good times they had in this Hotel. 

Teasing Angel; bonding with Gunn; snark-fights with Cordy, and coaxing shy Fred out of her shell. There had been small parties; the late night after slay dinners, the many games they played when bored. Wesley smiled at the memories.

Walking over, Faith hugged him again, noticing the distant smile on his face. "Good memories?"

"Yes," Wesley said, dropping a kiss on her forehead. "A lot of good memories," he whispered.

Spike walked into the office. For once he didn't make one of his patented remarks. Instead, he looked a bit worried. "They're here," he said, nodding his head toward the lobby.

Taking in a deep breath, Faith and Wesley followed the vampire out of the office. They found themselves face to face with their old friends. Fred, Gunn...and Angel. None of them looking very pleased.

"Lorne!" Fred squealed, moving away from the group. She hugged the demon tightly. "We were so worried about you!"

"I'm alright Fredikins," Lorne said, returning the hug.

Both Gunn and Angel nodded at Lorne, their faces showing relief that their friend seemed to be alright.

"What's going on here?" Angel wanted to know, his eyes locked with Cordelia.

"Who are these two?" Gunn demanded, nodding toward Wesley and Faith.

"And what is Spike doing here!" Angel said a little louder. It was obvious to anyone, that neither man was pleased. 

Cordelia moved closer to them, trying to find the right words. "I...I did something," she began. "I thought I'd done the right thing, but now...I'm not so sure." 

"What did you do Cordy?" Angel asked, frowning at her.

"I took something away from all of you, especially you Angel," Cordelia said, looking at the floor again.

"What?!" Gunn and Angel moved closer to Cordelia, obviously wanting to get to the bottom of this.

Cordelia looked up again. "I just want you to know that...that I'm sorry," She whispered.

A strange sound could be heard and all heads swirled over to Fred and Lorne. Fred was on the floor, while Lorne was holding a gun.

Both Gunn and Angel were about to question the demon. Suddenly they too, felt a searing pain in their heads, while everything turned white. With a loud thud, they fell to the floor.

Wesley and Spike, put down their memory guns and looked at their fallen friends. 

"Let's make sure they're as comfortable as possible," Wesley said. With Faith's help he moved Gunn over to one of the sofa's. He then helped Spike, who was doing the same with Angel. Lorne had already moved Fred in a more comfortable position.

"And we wait again," Cordelia sighed, sinking onto the floor, next to the sofa that held Angel. There was no turning back now, the deed was done. And she wasn't looking forward to any of them waking up. It was going to be a long wait, but it was never going to be long enough.


	7. Part 1

_Beta read by Minier and Lilacgirl_

**Hidden Secrets**

Images and sounds flew past, like a technicolor, dolby surround, wide-screen slide-show. A boy, Connor, he knew. A man, Wesley, a woman, Faith. Other people and demons, Darla, Holtz, Justine, Shajin. Feelings of pain, hatred, intense sadness, betrayal, and love crashed down on him. Connor, his _son_ , taken away from him, coming back, hating him, trying to kill him. Getting closer to his son, only to watch him spiral down into a dark despair, where he couldn't reach him, his son. Taken away from him, by a friend...again.

Angel blinked up to see a face hovering above him. The face looked worried, he knew this face. Though it seemed older now, somehow softer, grown up. He searched his newfound memory, but the last time he had seen this face, was about five years ago. When she spoke, he knew for certain who it was.

"You okay big guy?"

"Faith?" Angel managed to get out.

"Hey there," she winked at him, in a way he remembered well. 

Struggling for a moment, Angel sat up and looked around him. Lorne was looking at him with a face that showed sympathy. Gunn and Fred were on the sofa. What ever hit him, had hit them as well, only they weren't coming around as fast. Spike tried to look disinterested, but Angel could tell, the other vampire was watching him closely.

Looking to his left, he saw that Faith had been joined by a man. His arm was around her waist, and the way they both stood, told Angel everything about how comfortable they were with each other. Angel knew this man as well. He looked older too, but unlike Faith, his face held nothing of the soft traces it had once. His face was harder, his eyes guarding his emotions. Angel looked for a long moment at the ex-Watcher, taking in the changes, and what had remained the same.

Then the vampire's eyes glanced further to the left, to Cordelia. She looked desperate, scared, hopeful?

"What did you do?" Angel asked her, his voice soft, low. It alarmed Wesley and Spike. They involuntarily took a step closer to Angel, ready to interfere when needed.

Cordelia took a deep breath, raised her chin and took a step toward him. Only her hands, fumbling with her dress, belied her feelings.

"Angel I...I...," she tried. "I thought...that..." Angrily she wiped away some tears that were escaping. She gulped and looked down.

"What did you do," Angel asked again. This time his voice held a dangerous undertone that no one could miss.

Wesley stepped closer to Angel, trying to defuse the situation. "She took away the memory of Connor...of us," he started, pointing at Faith and himself. "She thought she was doing the right thing."

Glancing over at his old friend, Angel's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Cordelia wanted Connor to have a second chance, a real chance, Wesley continued, not in the least bit frazzled by look the vampire was giving him.

Angel looked back at Cordelia again. And before anyone could react, he was off the sofa and his hands wrapped around Cordelia's throat, lifting her up in the air, slamming her against the wall.

Her eyes widening with fear, Cordelia clawed at the hands around her throat, cutting off her air supply. She felt afraid. No, scared to death, was a better description. She was scared of her friend, for her life, something she had never felt before.

"Why!" Angel yelled at her. He shook her hard, not caring if he hurt her. He hardly even felt it when Spike and Faith tried their best to get him away from Cordelia.

"Angel!" Wesley shouted. "Let her go! This won't do any good, you'd regret your actions when you've come to your senses!"

At that point Faith and Spike had succeeded in prying Cordelia loose. They pushed Angel backward as Cordelia slid down the wall to the ground, gasping for air.

Lorne was at her side instantly, helping her up. "Take it easy sweetie," he said in a calm, soothing voice. Or he hoped it was calm and soothing, he himself couldn't seem to stop shaking.

"How could you?" Angel yelled, trying to get himself loose from Faith and Spike's hold. "I trusted you!"

Wesley looked back and forth between Angel and Cordelia, feeling an ironic sense of deja-vu. He felt sympathy for both his friends. After all, he had been in Cordelia's shoes once, figuratively speaking of course.

"Angel," Cordelia gasped. Her voice sounded as if she tried to put all her love, all her feelings into the name. "I only...wanted..."

"I don't care!" Angel interrupted. He had shaken free of Faith and Spike, but made no new attempts to lunge for Cordelia again. "I don't care," he repeated more calmly, he turned on his heels and moved to walk out of the building.

"Angel," Cordelia whispered and took a few steps in his direction, tears freely flowing down her face. 

Whirling around, Angel pointed an accusatory finger at her. "Stay out of my sight woman," he hissed. He turned around and stalked away from the group.

Cordelia sank to her knees, unable to stop crying. Her sobs were only thing that interrupted the tense silence that hung in the Hyperion lobby. Lorne held her, his hands rubbing circles on her back. He had no idea what to say, this was such a complete mess.

Wesley caught Faith's eye. He nodded his head in the direction Angel had stalked off to and moved into the same direction. Faith looked worried, but she knew she couldn't stop him, even if she wanted to. 'Be careful' she mouthed, as she watched him go after the angry vampire.

~*~*~*~

He found him exactly where he thought he would. On the roof of the Hyperion.

Wesley watched his old friend for some time, staring out over the City of Angels, before joining him. He sat down on the edge of the roof and said nothing. He glanced at Angel, before turning his head and look at the lights of Los Angeles nightlife.

"How did you know where to find me?" Angel asked after some time.

Wesley shrugged. "This used to be your favorite brooding spot."

Angel turned to look at his friend. He looked different, he couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was that made him so different. It wasn't the fact that Wesley looked older, or harder. Neither was it the fact that former Watcher seemed to have lost all the innocence Angel had found so endearing. He knew that Wesley had lost that innocence a long time ago. 

"I've missed you," Angel said.

"A few moments ago you didn't even know I existed." Wesley turned to look at him calmly, a gentle smile on his face.

That's when Angel knew what was different. Wesley looked...content, dare he even say...happy. Even with what was going on now, the evil they were fighting, the world they knew. Wesley had found his place.

"You don't hate her for what she did," Angel whispered. It wasn't a question, more an observation.

"No," Wesley sighed. "She thought she was doing the right thing. I can relate to that. I once was in her shoes. Only my mistake had more...disaterous results."

"You thought you were doing the right thing," Angel said forcefully. He knew this, he had understood this five years ago, he'd forgiven Wesley for taking Connor.

"And so did Cordelia," Wesley said. He looked at Angel, his blue eyes boring into the Vampire's brown ones, urging him to understand.

Wesley held up his hand to forestall any interruptions Angel might have. "I know removing the memories from you and the others was wrong. Making a deal with Wolfram & Hart was definitely an unwise move. But sometimes we are given choices, all of them bad choices, and all we can do is pick the one that seems right to us." He looked out on the city again. "And you pick the choices that harm our loved ones the least, no matter the cost to oneself." he ended softly. 

Angel looked at Wesley intensely, while his brain tried to go over what the ex-Watcher had said. "I don't think I can forgive her." 

"You can, and you will." Wesley turned to look at him again. "You love each other. Besides, if you wish to blame someone for this...mess, you should blame me."

Angel looked startled. "What?" He asked perplexed. "How is this your fault? Cordy is the one who messed up."

Giving the vampire an indulgent smile, Wesley sighed. "If I hadn't taken Connor, he wouldn't have grown up in a hell dimension, he wouldn't have been raised to hate you, he wouldn't have lost all sense of reality and Cordy wouldn't have to forced to make _her_ choice." It was simple really, how could anyone not see this?

Angel looked at him for so long, Wesley began to wonder if he shouldn't have told him it was actually his fault. He was about to ask if his friend was alright, when Angel shook his head.

"I can't believe you're still doing that," Angel said.

"What?" Wesley asked, giving him a puzzled look.

"Blaming yourself for everything. Not everything is your fault Wes."

"I know," Wesley said, "but neither is it wholly Cordy's fault." He thought for a moment, before looking at Angel again. 

"What would you have done, if they gave your son a chance to live, to be a normal child. Where the only problems he would have were girls, homework and how to get from under a curfew, normal teenage problems. Instead of not knowing if he'll survive to see the next day? Not knowing who you are? Who to trust, who to hate, where you belong?"

Angel was silent for a moment. He thought about how his son, how Connor had been. A confused boy, who didn't know who he was. Forced to live in a dark world. Not knowing who to look for when he needed answers. "I don't know," he whispered.

"Yes, you do," Wesley said, his voice certain.

"I..." Angel looked at Wesley, "I would have done something similar."

Wesley nodded. "You love him, you want the best for him. If this means not being with you, not knowing you, you would have done so."

A rare smile crept over Angel's face. "I really did miss you," he said. His smile broadened. "So, you and Faith?" He was amazed at how Wesley's features changed with the mere mention of her name.

Aware that Angel was trying to change the subject, Wesley let him...for now. "Yes," he smiled. "We're happy, amazing as that still sounds. I love her, and she loves me, I've no doubt about that."

"That's...great," Angel said. He thought about Cordelia. "So you forgave her for what she did to you?"  
Standing up, Wesley moved next to Angel. "Yes, we both have forgiven each other," he said, looking into the vampire's eyes. "We'll never forget, but we moved on. It's no use dwelling on what's in the past, on what cannot be changed. We learn from it."

Angel nodded. "Yes," he said. "It seems you have." He raised an eyebrow when Wesley snorted.

"For five years I thought you all had forgotten me, didn't care about me. It hurt, but I moved on. You did forget about me, only not in a way I could have imagined. I should have known that something was amiss. You never stop learning Angel," Wesley smiled.

"I guess so," Angel said, finding himself smile back. "But before this mind spell, I did want to go look for you and Faith, so did the others," he hurried, not sure if it was to excuse himself, or to reassure Wesley that they hadn't forgotten them.

"I know," Wesley assured him.

"Well, I'm glad to see there are no entrails hanging around the roof," a new voice cut in.

Both men whirled around to see Spike saunter over. Cigarette in his hand, looking every bit the bored, disinterested vampire, he was pretending to be.

"Why are you here Spike?" Angel growled.

"Just making sure you didn't tear apart the Watcher here, before I got to know him better," Spike shrugged, glancing over at Wesley.

Wesley looked between both vampires with an amused expression. He'd known Spike had followed him, and had been hiding in the shadows. He was a bit surprised Angel hadn't known, but then again, Angel had been very pre-occupied.

"You needn't have worried Spike, I was quite safe," Wesley said. "But thank you."

"Yeah well, didn't want to face the wrath of the Slayer either in case you weren't," Spike smirked.

"Of course," Wesley smirked back.

Angel glanced between the two, confusion clearly written on his face, and let out a sigh. "How's it going downstairs?"

Spike made a face. "Fred and Gunn woke up, they weren't very pleased either."

~*~*~*~

"But why?" Fred wanted to know for the hundredth time. She held on tight to Gunn, who had his arms around her and was glaring daggers at Cordelia.

Cordelia fought the urge to stomp her feet as she felt her temper rising. She had explained it at least seven times now. Of course. The fact that neither Gunn nor Fred had tried to kill her, should be considered a plus. Even though the looks of disappointment and hurt they gave her made her die a little inside.

"I wanted him to have a chance," she said again. Her voice was raw from crying, yelling, explaining.

"But why take away our memories of him too?" Gunn asked, his voice had regained some resemblance of calm.

"They didn't give me any choice," Cordelia whispered. "It was that way or Connor would have died."

Fred wiped away her tears and took a deep breath. Rubbing her hands over her face, she glanced at Cordelia through her fingers. "And why wipe out Wes?" she asked. "And Faith?" she added quickly.

"I wanted them to be happy," Cordelia said. She sank down on the sofa, all the energy seeming to have drained out of her.

"Yeah well, that wasn't your choice to make," Gunn said, but his voice didn't hold the anger it had before. He understood about the kid, he had known Connor. He didn't understand about wiping out Wes and Faith though.

"What she did to Wes and me, is between me, Wes and Cor," Faith said, her tone of voice leaving no room for argument. "And Wes and I have pretty much come to terms with it." She strode over and stood almost next to Cordelia.

"She took away my friend," Gunn said, pulling Fred closer to him. "Our friend."

Fred rubbed her hands over his arms. "It wasn't as if we were good friend anymore Charles," she whispered.

"We were working on that," Gunn said, his jaw set. "She took that away. It could have been like old times again."

"Too many things have happened for it ever to be like old times again," Lorne brought in. "And those things have nothing to do with any mind wipe."

"But...but...we can work on that now?" Fred asked, timidly glancing at Faith.

"Depends on what Wes wants," She shrugged. "In the mean time all this yelling and accusing isn't going to do shit, we need to figure out what to do now."

"Simple," Angel's voice came from the stairs. He walked down, calm and sure of himself. He didn't however, look at Cordelia.

Wesley and Spike came down as well. Wesley moved toward Faith and wrapped her in his arms.

Angel crossed his arms and looked at each of them, this time he did include Cordelia. "We take out Wolfram & Hart."


End file.
